Dream a Little Dream of Me
by christmasinacup
Summary: A short Caskett one-shot based off of a dream I had. Castle and Beckett discuss a case while doing a little cleaning at The Old Haunt.


Okay, guys, so basically I had a dream about Caskett that made no sense, so I wrote it, almost word for word. In my dream, I got the sense that Castle and Beckett weren't officially together, but that Castle knew Beckett heard the "I love you." Probably the deal is that Kate just wants to solve her mother's murder before she completely devotes herself to Castle. But they are practically a couple ;) Enjoy, and please review!

Also, anyone else feel like The Old haunt never gets mentioned anymore? :(

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><p>Kate Beckett balanced her cell phone on her shoulder, pressing her cheek up against it while she rummaged through a drawer.<p>

"Castle, we need evidence to bring her in. You can't bring someone down to the precinct because 'they have that look of a backstabbing killer!'"

She found what she was looking for and climbed up the stairs from the secret hiding place behind the bar at The Old Haunt. Castle was standing behind the bar, his back to her. Kate rolled her eyes and hung up her phone.

"But if Angela wanted to keep the dance studio, that's major motive for murder! I…"

He looked at the screen of his phone, confused. Kate coughed and he turned around.

"Oh. Hi."

"Hi. Where's your shirt?"

Castle was in fact shirtless. He made a sad-puppy face as he came around the bar.

"I didn't want to wear a shirt drenched in vodka," he whined, holding his hand out to take the clean, dry navy blue v-neck from Kate. "What if I caught on fire?"

She laughed at him and shook her head. "No shirt until you tell me why Angela did it, with a _logical_ explanation."

Castle grinned. "You make it all too easy, Detective Beckett. See, Angela knew that when her sister, Megan, died from breast cancer 2 months ago, the dance studio would go to Megan's ex-husband, James. Angela needed the profit from the studio to pay her rent, and that's why she killed him!"

Kate thought it over. It made sense, although it was a little easy. But sometimes the connection between the murderer and the victim were simpler than you would think. A smile crept across her face, and Castle watched for it expectantly, waiting to declare victory and claim his shirt. For reasons she couldn't quite explain, she didn't want to give it to him just yet. She gestured around the bar, with the mess of bottles on the counter and the broom leaning against one of the booths.

"Why are we doing this again?"

Castle gasped in mock-horror. "Why? _Why?_ We are getting rid of all the old liquor and cleaning the bar so the customers can have the best The Old Haunt has to offer!," he said dramatically, wiggling his eyebrows.

"It doesn't have anything to do with that blonde from last week who looked disgusted when you said you didn't know how old that bottle of scotch was?" Kate was disgusted at the jealousy that was easily detectable in her voice.

Castle looked at her suspiciously and she looked away, pretending to be interested in the array of colorful bottles on the counter . "No….."

She walked a few steps closer to him and he put his arm around her shoulder, leading her behind the bar with him.

"What's your pleasure, Detective Beckett? Something with a cherry, I presume?"

She laughed and hopped up to sit on the bar counter, watching him bustle around the small space, making a Shirley Temple. He finished it off with a cherry and handed it to her, his eyes wide and excited. Again the puppy comparison came to mind. She took a sip and waited for him to ask.

"Can I have my shirt now, please?"

He stood right in front of her, practically at the same height.

"Only if you promise that you still love me," she declared.

He grinned and leaned towards her, pressing a quick kiss to her lips, making a smacking noise. She blushed and handed him his shirt, almost sad when he slipped it on and continued to move about the bar.

"Aren't you going to call the Esposito and Ryan to tell them I just blew this case wide open?"

Kate laughed. "Only if I get another cherry in my drink."

Castle spun around and dropped another cherry into her glass. They caught each other's eyes for a moment and held their gazes with a look only they understood. Love, friendship, appreciation, need. There really was no way to explain their relationship, except for that look. It summed everything up pretty well.


End file.
